The Mechanics of Putting The Mechanics of Putting Your Courses OnlineYour Courses Online

Summer Institute 2003

Lesley Blicker, Office of Instructional Technology

651-632-5031

Most Common Myths of Online Courses

That extreme amounts of streamed video is required That teaching online is similar as teaching in the

traditional class Minimal amount of time is required to facilitate a course That you can put as much information as possible online,

or upload Power Point slides and think it is enough That online courses have limited activities.

Some material adapted from Jeffrey Feldberg’s presentation at Iteach, 2003 (Embanet)

More Myths of Online Courses

That nothing can replace the in-person experience Online education is so impersonal; we’ll create a society

of socially inept individuals Online’s effectiveness is yet to be determine That online courses cannot have the same quality of

interaction among students and instructor

Learning online pedagogy requires a certain openness for change, because the functions of an online teacher are quite different than a face-to-face teacher.

Online teaching is no more appropriate for every instructor than it is for every student.

Considerations in Developing an Online Course

• Who are my students?

• What do I want to accomplish through this course?

• How do I successfully transfer it to the online environment?

• What guidelines, rules, roles, and norms need to be established for course completion?

• How is course material best delivered?

Adapted from Lessons from the Cyberspace Classroom, Palloff and Pratt, Jossey-Bass, 2001

Considerations in Developing an Online Course – cont’d

• How comfortable am I creating a student-centered environment/letting go of control?

• How is the course site best organized?

• How will I assess student performance?

• How will I address attendance requirements?

• How do I define learning and what do I want to see as the learning outcomes?

Adapted from Lessons from the Cyberspace Classroom, Palloff and Pratt, Jossey-Bass, 2001

Expectations of Students

The course is easy to access All technologies work Instructor feedback is turned around rapidly Not much synchronous time is required Learning is non-linear Grades can be accessed 24x7 They don’t want to sit in front of a computer reading the

equivalent of another text book Some students like to work ahead

Some material adapted from Jeffrey Feldberg’s presentation at Iteach, 2003 (Embanet)

Course Design

Mechanics of Putting Your Materials

OnlineCourse

Management

The Basic Elements of Learning How to Develop and Teach a

Course Online

The Pedagogy of Online Teaching

Instructional design (storyboarding your content) Syllabus, course policies and guidelines as applied to

online learning Web site design (layout, navigation, usability,

accessibility) Technology know-how (some multi-media, html files,

etc.) Copyright law applied to Internet

Course Design

The Pedagogy of Online Teaching

Knowledge of best pedagogical practices that most effectively engage learners (with instructor, with material and with each other)

Instructional role as differentiated from f2f (instructor as facilitator)

Active learning strategies (constructivist theory) Development of effective online content Creation of effective online activities Learner Assessment

Mechanics of Putting Your Materials

Online

Knowledge of the IMS system (features you want to use such as quizzes, assignment drop box, etc.)

Converting files to web-ready documents Creating multi-media files or other new files File management

Course Management

Preparing students for online learning Pacing yourself Tracking students Rhythm of the semester or course Prompt and rich feedback to students Course evaluation and feedback from students

A Step-Wise Approach to Putting Your Courses Online

A Simple Course DesignBest for a blended model

• Syllabus and course schedule are uploaded

• Email function is utilized

• Grade book is used

• Power points or other class materials are uploaded (maybe go paperless)

An Intermediate Course Design

• Deeper use of the tools in the Simple Design – now includes discussion board

• File management – most materials have been created and uploaded

• Presence of Content Modules

• Student group feature is utilized

• Site design more fully developed

• Addition of self-test, assignment drop box, and online quizzes

• Evidence of learner interaction

An Advanced Course Design

• Advanced use of Content Module

• Advanced use of the Quiz and Survey Module or uploading question sets from Respondus

• Implementing different uses of the Discussions Tool

• Student Presentations taken up a notch (link to Content Module and Glossary)

• Adding video and audio to your course

The Facilitator as the Success Coach

Facilitator has many roles, none more important than that of the ‘Success Coach’

Learners need positive encouragement and feedback

Online can be an isolated and ‘scary’ experience for learners

Effective online facilitators build communication and outcomes that are stronger and better than traditional courses

Source: Jeffrey Feldberg’s presentation at Iteach, 2003 (Embanet)

Plan out your course before you build it Always focus on learning outcomes Encourage significant interactivity through discussions and team

based activities Interactive media that is sensitive to the learner’s environment

significantly enhances the learning experience Keep navigation simple with information easy to find

Summary

Source: Jeffrey Feldberg’s presentation at Iteach, 2003 (Embanet)

Re-fresh your courses at the end of each term to incorporate collected feedback from students and facilitators.

Ensure learners and Instructors have professional 24/7 support

Be an e-Learning Success Coach

Summary - continued

Source: Jeffrey Feldberg’s presentation at Iteach, 2003 (Embanet)

Lesley Blicker, IMS Faculty ExpertOffice of Instructional Technology

lesley.blicker@csu.mnscu.edu651-632-5031